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H. A; JOHNSON. MEGHANISM FOR AGTUATING AND IN' I'ERLOGKING POINTS AND SIGNALS. No. 317,137. Patented May 5, 1885.

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(No Model.) 3 SheetsSheet 2.

V I H. A! JOHNSON. MECHANISM FOR AUTUATING AND INTERLOGKING POINTS AND'S IGNAL S. No. 317,137. Patented May 5, 1885.

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H. A. JOHNSON.

MECHANISM FOR AGTUATING AND INTERLOUKING POINTS AND SIGNALS. No. 317,137. Patentqd May 5, 1885.

r I 'UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY ARTHUR JOHNSON, OF FLIXTON, COUNTY OF LANCASTER, ENGLAND.

MECHANISM FOR ACTUATING AND INTERLOCKING POINTS AND SIGNALS.

$PECIPICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 317,137, dated May 5, 1885.

Application filed March 19, 1885. (No model.) I

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HENRYARTHUR J OHN- soN,'a subject of the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at FliXton, in the county of Lancaster, England, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Mechanism for Actuating Interlocking -Gear for Railway Points and Signals, of which the following is a specification, reference being hadto the accompanying drawings.

The object of this invention is to simplify the mechanism for actuating the interlocking apparatus. In carrying out the invention I use the system of locking and interlocking well known as preliminary actuation, and myinvention consists, principally, in the combination, with a main lever for working one set of railway-points or a sigual and the devices for interlocking said lever with another lever for working another set of points or signals, and a catch attached to the said main lever for holding it in either of its safety positions, of an arc-shaped lever, which I call the rocker, pivoted to or having its fulcrum on the said .main lever, and having a sliding connection with the interlocking devices, whereby in the movement of the said main lever from one to the other of its safety positions the fulcrum or pivot of the said rocker is caused to pass from one side to the other of the connection of the said rocker with the interlocking devices. My invention further consists in certain details, hereinafter described and claimed.

Figure 1 in the accompanying drawings is a side elevation of a main lever and its locking-gear. Fig. 2 is a front elevation of a series of such levers and their interlocking-gear. Figs. 3 and 4 are side views illustrating the movements of the rocker, which constitutes the most important element of my invention. Fig. 5 is a plan partly in section corresponding with Fig. 2.

Similar letters of reference designate corresponding parts in the severalfigures.

A A A are the main levers, each furnished with the usual clutch, B, by means of which its catch-rod G is lifted for disengaging its catch 0 from the projection of the stationary segment F, provided on the lever-stand G, by

means of which and the catch 0 the main lever is held in either its front or back position in a well-known manner.

D is the arcshaped lever, which I call the rocker, fulcrumed or pivoted at D to a projection, A, on the main lever, and jointed at C to the catch-rod O. The radius of the arc of this rocker in the example represented is such that when the catch-rod is raised and the main lever unlocked from the stand the said rocker is concentric with the fulcrum O of the main'lever, as shown in dotted linesin Figs. 3 and 4., and also shown in unbroken lines in Fig. 4.. The rocker passes through the slotted head E of the tappet or rodE, which is used to engage with the usual stops and motion-pieces, I I I", Fig. 2,which are fixed upon the sliding interlocking bars H, which work in the fixed guides N. In the normal position of the main lever A (shown in Figs. 1 and 3) the end D" of the rocker D farthest from the said lever engages with the tappethead E. Upon raising the catch-rod G the catch 0 is lifted clear of the segmental projection F, thus allowing the main lever A to be pulled over, and at the same time the rocker is moved on its pivot D to the position shown in dotted outline in Fig. 3, its end D being depressed and carrying the tappet E with it a sufficient distance to accomplish a sufficient movement of the corresponding sliding bar H -(see Fig. 2) to accomplish the locking of the tappets of such other of the levers A A as should be locked before the lever A is pulled to its back position. The rocker being now in a position concentric to the fulcrum of the lever, slides freely through the tappet-head without producing any further movement of the tappet while the lever is being pulled over to the position shown in Fig. 4. The leverA having been pulled over to the position shown in Fig. 4, the center or pivot D,constituting the fulcrum of the rocker, comes on the opposite side of the tappet E, so that when the catch 0 is lowered behind the segmental projection F on the stand the tappet E is forceddown suf ficiently farther by the action on the rocker of the spring or weight applied to the catch 0 on its rod 0 or the spring applied in the clutch B to accomplish the unlocking of the tappets of such levers as should be released on completing the movement of the lever A to the back position.

On proceeding to return the lever A to its normal position the reverse of the above movements takes placeviz., the catch-rod being first raised, the tappet E is raised a sufficient distance to lock the tappets of such levers as should be locked when A is in its normal position, at the same time bringing the rockerD concentric to the fulcrum O of the lever A, which, being then returned to its normal position, (shown in Fig. l and in bold outline in Fig. 3,) allows the end D of the rocker to assume its normal position in the head of the tappet, so that when the catch 0 is lowered in front of the projection F the rocker will raise the tappet to its normal position, (shown in the said figures.) This releases all those tappets of other main levers whichshould be unlocked or free when the lever A is in its normal position.

It may be here remarked that though I prefer to construct and arrange the rocker so that it comes concentric with the fulcrum of the main lever when the latter is unlocked from the stand G, that it may slide through the tappet-head as the lever moves from one to the other of its safety positions, it is not absolutely necessary that the rocker should be so constructed, for it might so vary that it would be made to force the tappet farther down to do the unlocking in moving to its back position.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The combination, with a main lever for operating a set of railway-points or a signal, interlocking devices for interlocking said 1ever with another lever for working another set of points or signals, a catch attached to said main lever for holding it in either of its safety positions, and an arc-formed lever or rocker fulcrumed to the said main lever, connected with said catch, and having a sliding connection with the said devices for interlocking, substantially as herein described.

2. The combination,with the main lever, the tappet or rod for operating the interlocking devices, and the catch for locking the said lever, of a lever or rocker pivoted to said main lever connected with said catch, havingasliding connection with the said tappet or rod, and being of such are form that it may be brought concentric with the fulcrum of said main lever, substantially as and for the purpose herein described.

3. The combination, with the main lever A, its catch-rod O, the arc-formed lever or rocker D, fulcrumed on said lever A and connected with said lever D, of the tappet or rodE for operating the interlocking devices, and the sliding connection between said lever D and tappet or rod E, permitting the fulcrum of said lever D to pass from one side to the other of said tappet or rod, substantially as and for the purpose herein described.

HENRY ARTHUR JOHNSON.

Witnesses:

J OSEPH I-IOWARTI-I, J. IV. STAFFORD, Clerks with llfessrs. Ormerod 61* Allen, Solicitors and Notaries, llfanchester. 

